For a Thoroughbred, is it luck or misfortune to be born in the same era as a legendary existence?
—She doesn't need an answer.
- The first flower of the golden trail
In 2015,Orfevre's first crop of foals were born one after another. On April 3rd of the same year at Northern Farm, the winner of the American dirt Grade I Ashland Stakes,Lilacs and Lacegave birth to her fourth foal. Her sire was a Classic Triple Crown winner, her dam was an American G1 winner, and her broodmare sireFlower Alley(Flower Alley) was also a famous American stallion. This combination of strong bloodlines made the chestnut filly highly anticipated. At two years old, she was named Lucky Lilac, inheriting part of her mother's name and embarking on her racing journey with blessings of good luck.
On August 20, 2017, Lucky Lilac made her debut in a two-year-old newcomers' race restricted to fillies. As the second favorite, Lucky Lilac took a good forward position and easily pulled away from the field on the home straight to win her debut race.
Aiming for a two-year-old graded race, Lucky Lilac went straight to the 1600m Grade 3 Artemis Stakes. At this time, although the turf was listed as Good, rain had already started to fall, slightly affecting the track. Second-favorite Lucky Lilac maintained a forward position on the outside of the pack throughout, keeping good space for the final sprint. On the home straight, Lucky Lilac surged forward at the signal of jockey Shu Ishibashi, gradually pulling clear of the pack. With her quite excellent pitch[Prototype 1]stride, she eventually overtook the wire-to-wire leader by three-quarters of a lengthSayakachan（サヤカチャン）[Prototype 2], crossing the line first to become Orfevre's second graded stakes-winning offspring.
Having earned priority entry for the Hanshin JF, she naturally set her sights on this battle to decide the two-year-old queen. In the Hanshin JF, as the two graded stakes winners from Orfevre's first crop, Lucky Lilac and the Sapporo Nisai Stakes winnerロックディスタウン[Prototype 3]Rock This Town. In the same race, the third favoriteLily Noble(リリーノーブル)[Prototype 4], the fourth favoriteMau Lea(マウレア)[Prototype 5]were both undefeated in two starts and not to be underestimated, along withBuena Vista's offspring, the fifth favoriteソシアルクラブcompeted.
As the gates opened, Sayakachan went against her previous tactics and chose to take a forward position,ロックディスタウンPositioned third, Lucky Lilac and Lily Noble kept pace side-by-side in the middle of the pack, following behind Mau Lea. Entering the final straight, Mau Lea quickly broke out from the pack and briefly took the lead. At the same time, Lucky Lilac began a spirited chase on the outside, eventually catching Mau Lea before the finish line to cross with a 3/4 length advantage. As the first-crop foal of Orfevre, Lucky Lilac proved her father's breeding prowess, dedicating the crown of this two-year-old G1 race to him.
With three wins in three starts and two graded stakes wins, Lucky Lilac earned the honor of JRA Best Two-Year-Old Filly with a unanimous 290 votes.
- The Unreachable Shadow Roll
2018 was a year destined to be written into horse racing history. It opened an era belonging to a succession of heroes, and the so-called "Era of Fillies" also began in this year. However, in such a great and exciting year, good luck did not seem to favor this chestnut two-year-old queen.
Aiming for the Filly Triple Crown, Lucky Lilac chose the Oka Sho trial—the G2 Tulip Sho—as her first warm-up race of 2018. At this time, Lucky Lilac, undefeated with three wins in three starts, was naturally pushed to the first favorite with overwhelming odds of 1.8. Similarly, in this race, Lucky Lilac undoubtedly demonstrated her strength. Racing calmly in a good third position, she easily overtook the leading Ami du Monde andカレンシリエージョsurpassed them, withstanding the pursuit of Mau Lea and Lily Noble from behind, crossing the finish line with a comfortable two-length margin. With four wins in four starts, the perfect Lucky Lilac headed towards the Oka Sho.
2018, Oka Sho. Mau Lea and Lily Noble were the third and fourth favorites respectively, while thatfirst favorite with 1.8 win oddswas, without suspense, the consecutively victoriousLucky LilacLucky Lilac. Unrivaled at the 1600m turf distance, wearing the No. 1 saddle cloth, she seemed to already have the victory in her hands.
The gates opened. Lucky Lilac burst out quickly, executing her forward-running tactic in her familiar third position, smoothly following the pack. At the entrance of the final straight, her long-time partner jockey Shu Ishibashi quickly pulled Lucky Lilac to the outside. The space ahead opened up, and she timed her sprint perfectly. The situation was excellent; everything was textbook perfect. Lucky Lilac easily passed the front-runner and ran at the head of the pack, shaking off other competitors from behind as she sprinted toward the finish.
At the very moment victory was in sight, chargingAlmond eyes's presence. The white shadow band was so dazzling that it stole the spotlight of the race in an instant. This horse, who had won the G3 Shinzan Kinen with an astonishing late kick,Lord Kanaloa（ロードカナロア) offspring, charged from the 16th position in the pack, overtaking all participants in a heartbeat. Lucky Lilac had no energy left for a second burst and could only watch as the other horse pulled away by one and a half lengths to win the dazzling first crown.
Just like that, Almond Eye was crowned the Queen of the Sakura. Lucky Lilac took a placeRunner-up, tasting defeat for the first time. A single loss could not stop the chestnut queen's progress; the stable set their sights on the Oaks, seeking to avenge their loss. However, Lucky Lilac did not know at the time that the nightmare of that shadow roll would haunt her year after year.
After one defeat, the popularity of Lucky Lilac and Almond Eye seemed to have swapped. Almond Eye was the first favorite with odds of 1.7, while Lucky Lilac was the second favorite at 4.1. The rising star who won the trial race decisively,サトノワルキューレwas the third favorite. Led by Sayakachan setting the pace, strong horses like Almond Eye, Lucky Lilac, and Lily Noble bunched up in the forward group. The field moved at an unrelenting pace, and soon, the pack stretched out into a line.
Climbing the slope that signaled the end of the race, Lily Noble was the first to spurt from the center of the track, while Lucky Lilac, refusing to be outdone, chased desperately behind her without showing any signs of weakening. However, the situation changed in an instant. Almond Eye easily caught Lucky Lilac and Lily Noble from the outside, taking a commanding lead 300 meters before the finish line and crossing it with a two-length advantage, achieving theFillies' Double Crown. Lucky Lilac could not catch up, finishing one and three-quarter lengths behind Lily Noble to takethird place. The owner of that white shadow roll once again left Lucky Lilac looking at her back.
Having suffered regrettable losses in two G1 races, Lucky Lilac was not blessed by the "luck" in her name during the next part of her journey. The stable had originally planned to enter her in the G2 Rose Stakes on September 16, but due to swelling in her right hind fetlock, they had to cancel the race and go straight to the Shuka Sho. Bad news continued to arrive; Lucky Lilac's regular jockey, Shu Ishibashi, was injured in a fall during the seventh race at Tokyo on October 8, suffering a dislocated and fractured right ankle. They were forced to find a temporary replacement, and Yuichi Kitamura, who had not yet won a G1 race at the time, took the reins.
Before the Shuka Sho, Lucky Lilac's weight reached 510 kg, a full 18 kg heavier than during the Oaks. Combined with her return from a long break and the change of jockey, everything seemed a bit unsettling. Even so, Lucky Lilac still received support as the second favorite with odds of 7.3. Almond Eye, aiming for the Triple Crown, was ranked first with staggering odds of 1.3.
This time, Lucky Lilac still failed to wash away the shame of defeat. Due to a mistake by the jockey, Lucky Lilac ran on the outside for the entire race and took the fourth turn very wide, wasting too much energy. Upon entering the home straight, Lucky Lilac had no strength left to sprint and sank into the middle of the pack, watching as Almond Eye achieved the Triple Crown.Ninth placeReturning from a crushing defeat, Lucky Lilac thus ended her journey in the Fillies' Triple Crown.
Behind the white shadow roll she could not overtake, the three-year-old season of this chestnut two-year-old queen came to an end.
- Victory Recedes, Luck No Longer Remains
At the start of her four-year-old year, Lucky Lilac competed in the GII Nakayama Kinen, her first time participating in a mixed-age race. Besides Lucky Lilac herself, there were a total of five G1 winners in the field: the winner of six graded stakes in his career and last year's Nakayama Kinen winner,Win Bright（ウインブライト）[Prototype 6]; the winner of last year's Mile ChampionshipStelvio（ステルヴィオ）[Prototype 7]; the winner of the Osaka Hai and the Japan CupSuave Richard（スワーヴリチャード）[Prototype 8]; the Satsuki Sho winner,OrfevreprogenyEpoca d'Oro（エポカドーロ）[Prototype 9]; the 2017 Shuka Sho winner, who flew off for a long-term overseas expedition,Deirdre（ディアドラ）[Prototype 10]. These five horses took the first through fifth favorite spots, while Lucky Lilac was supported as the sixth favorite. During the race, Lucky Lilac stayed close in second place throughout, until she was finally overtaken on the uphill climb of the home straight byWin Brightovertaken. Facing a field of experienced older horses, she still delivered a decent performance, finishingRunner-up。
On April 6th, Lucky Lilac entered the G2 Hanshin Himba Stakes as the first favorite with odds in the 1.x range. The second favorite was the Shuka Sho runner-up,ミッキーチャーム[Prototype 11], as well as the runner-up of the Queen Elizabeth II Cup for three consecutive years,Crocosmia（クロコスミア）[Prototype 12]. However, Lucky Lilac's performance did not live up to expectations. During the race, at the third corner, Lucky Lilac was trapped behind the pack. Although she pulled to the outside before the home straight, she could not catch up with the leaders, finishing only ineighth placeto finish the race.
May 12th, the G1 Victoria Mile. Despite her heavy defeat in the previous race, Lucky Lilac still received support as the first favorite in the win pool. The second favorite, the 2017 NHK Mile Cup winnerAerolithe（アエロリット) was seeking her second G1 victory, while the winner of the '16 Hanshin JF and '17 Oaks,Soul Stirring（ソウルスターリング) aimed for a comeback. Learning from the previous race, Shu Ishibashi urged Lucky Lilac to take the fifth position. However, the pace of this race was unexpectedly fast, with the 1000m split reaching a staggering 56.1 seconds, which was disadvantageous for the front-runners. On the home straight, due to consuming too much energy mid-race, most of the front-runners were unable to sprint. Those who had been conserving energy in the back for a long timeNormcore（ノームコア) andプリモシーンsurpassed the front-runners. The fifth favorite, Normcore, was the first to cross the line, shattering the race record with a time of 1:30.5. Lucky Lilac crossed the finish line in 1:30.6, finishing fourth by a narrow margin.
Following a string of defeats, Lucky Lilac was initially scheduled to compete in the G3 Queen Stakes, then shifted her target to the Sapporo Kinen in August, before ultimately cancelling her entry to conserve energy for the autumn. On October 14, Lucky Lilac entered the G2 Fuchu Himba Stakes as the second favorite. Despite her weight ballooning by 16kg, she was defeated by the fourth favoriteスカーレットカラーand the ninth favoriteフロンテアクイーン, finishing in third place. At this point, having suffered seven consecutive losses, Lucky Lilac had no idea that the long-overdue stroke of luck was finally about to arrive.
- Dawn After the Long Night, a Late Blessing
In November, the renowned Belgian jockey Christophe Soumillon arrived in Japan once again. He boasted countless achievements abroad, having repeatedly claimed the title of French Champion Jockey. He had riddenOrfevrein two editions of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, finishing a close second both times. On the Japanese stage, he rode Buena Vista to victory in the 2010 Autumn Tenno Sho, and in 2014, he joinedEpiphaneiato win the Japan Cup together. This time, he would form a new partnership with Orfevre's daughter, Lucky Lilac, as they set their sights on the Queen Elizabeth II Cup.
November 10, 2019, was a day of clear skies, and this edition of the Queen Elizabeth II Cup was destined to be an extraordinary one. From the then three-year-old "GLC"[Prototype 13]legendary generation, two were gathered here: the first favorite, the then-undefeated Oaks winnerLoves Only You, and the second favorite, the recent Shuka Sho winnerChrono Genesis. And Lucky Lilac, representing the four-year-olds, followed closely as the third favorite.
The race began, and Crocosmia, who had finished second in this race for two consecutive years, took the lead with a large gap, setting a relaxed pace of 62.8 seconds for the first 1000 meters. The slow pace favored the front-runners, and strong horses like Loves Only You and Chrono Genesis scrambled for forward positions. Lucky Lilac was positioned further back than originally planned, staying on the inside of the mid-pack in 7th or 8th place to conserve energy.
After entering the third turn, the pack's speed suddenly increased significantly. Behind Crocosmia, the field quickly closed the gap. At that moment, Crocosmia drifted slightly outward, and the pack as a whole sprinted from an outer position—leaving the inside of the home straight wide open. Seeing the space to accelerate, Christophe Soumillon immediately urged Lucky Lilac to break through from the inner rail, and Lucky Lilac unleashed an incredible closing speed, overtaking Chrono Genesis and Loves Only You in succession. Continuing her pursuit along the inner rail, she seized the advantage from the inside of Crocosmia. Accompanied by the commentator's cheers and shouts, the long-awaited luck finally favored Lucky Lilac.
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"The awakening of the two-year-old queen!! Lucky Lilac is revived!!!" |
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A victory after 1 year and 7 months, this was the restoration of the two-year-old queen—Lucky Lilac had achieved a complete revival. Christophe Soumillon also secured a JRA G1 victory for the first time in five years, using the joy of winning to wash away the regret of failing to win the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe with Orfevre.
On December 8, Lucky Lilac teamed up with Soumillon again and headed to Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong to participate in the 2400m international G1 race, the Hong Kong Vase. There were two other Japanese representatives in the same race: the Nikkei Shinshun Hai winner and four-year-old colt,Glory Vase（グローリーヴェイズ), and the one who had faced Lucky Lilac many times before,Deirdre. In both Hong Kong and Japan, the previous winner and local horseExultant(Exultant) was the first favorite in the win pool, while in the Japanese odds, Lucky Lilac, Glory Vase, and Deirdre were the second, third, and fourth favorites respectively.
Exultant took the lead, while Lucky Lilac stayed in the rear-middle of the pack waiting for the final sprint. At the last turn before the straight, Soumillon in the saddle seized an opening and chose to swing wide, finding clear air ahead as they entered the home straight. Lucky Lilac accelerated into her sprint, while on the inside, Glory Vase, under jockey João Moreira, also found a path and chased down Exultant together. Glory Vase showed incredible momentum, immediately overtaking both Lucky Lilac and Exultant, crossing the finish line just as Lucky Lilac finally passed Exultant. In the end, Lucky Lilac took second place, Exultant took third, and Deirdre finished fourth.
Although she did not participate in the year-end Arima Kinen, Lucky Lilac still ranked eleventh in the fan vote with 49,732 votes. Thus, the menacingly revived queen Lucky Lilac concluded her four-year-old season.
—In 2020, the legendaryThe Era of Mares。
As a five-year-old, Lucky Lilac first prepared for races in Dubai, then used the Nakayama Kinen as her seasonal debut. In the Nakayama Kinen, where a strong field gathered, Lucky Lilac was paired with a new foreign jockey, Mirco Demuro. Lucky Lilac, the second favorite, showed poor response at the third and fourth turns, but still held off the pursuit from behind byFairy Knight（ペルシアンナイト）、Indy Champ（インディチャンプ）、Soul Stirringand other G1 winners, losing only to the first favoriteDanon Kingly（ダノンキングリー), finishing as the runner-up. Having placed second in this race for two consecutive years, Lucky Lilac was set to head to the Osaka Hai in April to avenge her losses.
On April 5th, at Hanshin Racecourse, the G1 Osaka Hai was held, and Lucky Lilac once again received the support of being the second favorite. The first favorite, Danon Kingly, aimed for his first G1 victory, while the Arima Kinen winnerRiot Gearwas the third favorite. Chrono Genesis, starting her career as an older horse, and the Derby winnerWagnerian（ワグネリアン), and the seven-year-old Derby winner seeking a comeback,Makahiki（マカヒキ) also gathered here. At Hanshin Racecourse, which continued to hold races behind closed doors, the cherry blossoms were in bloom.
The first to break from the gates was number 8, Danon Kingly, who began to lead,ジナンボーfollowed closely. Number 5, Lucky Lilac, also took advantage of her inner draw before the first turn to easily secure an inside position, maintaining third place. At the third turn, Blast Onepiece began to accelerate from the outside, and Chrono Genesis, keenly aware of the situation, also slightly picked up speed from her forward position. Poised and ready, the field galloped through the fourth turn.
According to jockey Mirco Demuro, Lucky Lilac "might have been slow to respond in the previous race due to the long layoff, but today she was in top form, actively taking the bit from the third to the fourth turn, with excellent feedback for the sprint." Entering the final straight, as Danon Kingly began to pull away fromジナンボー, Chrono Genesis also gave chase from the outside. Along withジナンボー's retreat, Lucky Lilac, seizing the opportunity from the inner path, quickly slipped into the gap between Chrono Genesis and Danon Kingly, and easily broke through, surging into the lead in one go in the final 100 meters, ultimately holding off Chrono Genesis by a neck to claim herthird G1 title.。
- The Lucky Goddess of Kansai
In the Takarazuka Kinen, rain fell intermittently. However, the third-favorite Lucky Lilac finished only sixth, watching as Chrono Genesis, who crossed the line with a stunning six-length lead, transformed into a monster in the rain. In the Sapporo Kinen at the end of summer, Lucky Lilac finished third as the first favorite, with her old rival Normcore taking the victory. After two defeats, she returned to the race she knew so well—Queen Elizabeth II Cup. Here, she set out toward the grand feat of consecutive victories.
This time, Mirco Demuro chose to ride his main mount Loves Only You, and Lucky Lilac's jockey was changed to Christophe Lemaire. At this time, Lucky Lilac's weight reached 522 kg, the heaviest in the field. Loves Only You,サラキア, Normcore,Win Marilyn（ウインマリリン) and other strong horses gathered once again, and Lucky Lilac naturally ascended to the position of the first favorite in the win betting.
At the start of the race,Normcoreboldly adopted a runaway strategy.Win Marilyn、リアアメリア、ソフトフルートThree three-year-olds formed the core of the leading group, while Loves Only You and Lucky Lilac held steady at the back. The pace of the first half of the race was very tight, with the first 1,000 meters run in 59.3 seconds. After passing the third turn, the situation changed abruptly—the five-year-oldウラヌスチャームrapidly advanced from 14th place on the outside, and Lucky Lilac seized the moment to follow closely behind, starting to accelerate forward. Reaching the entrance of the final straight, on the outsideリアアメリアand Win Marilyn on the inside tried to overtake the front-running Normcore, but Lucky Lilac had already surged from 11th to 3rd place, sweeping in from the outside with overwhelming momentum.
The path ahead was clear. She overtook the other horses almost instantly, breaking through powerfully. Her closing speed showed no signs of fading, even asサラキアtogether with Loves Only You launched a joint pursuit against her, Lucky Lilac's lead could not be shaken in the slightest, and she secured the win by a neck.
Queen Elizabeth II Cupback-to-back featachieved, Lucky Lilac claimed herfourth G1 title。
On December 3rd, the connections announced that the year-end Arima Kinen would be Lucky Lilac's final race. Lucky Lilac ranked second in the Arima Kinen fan vote with 212,674 votes, trailing the first-place Chrono Genesis by only two thousand votes. In the saddle was the undefeated Classic Triple Crown winnerContrail（コントレイル)'s regular jockey Yuichi Fukunaga, competing in the year-end Grand Prix as the fourth favorite. During the middle of the race, Lucky Lilac remained steady in the middle of the pack, waiting for her chance. As the leaders began to accelerate on the backstretch, she gradually moved forward, entering the final straight in an ideal position. Unfortunately, 2,500 meters was a bit of a stretch for Lucky Lilac. Her lack of distance aptitude caused her final sprint to lose steam, and she was unable to advance further, ultimately finishing fourth.
After the Arima Kinen, Lucky Lilac retired with a record of 7 wins in 19 starts, including six graded stakes wins and four G1 victories. Born in Kansai, Lucky Lilac's four G1 victories as well as a G2 win were all achieved in theKansairegion, becoming an absolutely brilliant part of the "Era of Fillies and Mares."
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"Throughout her entire racing career, she embodied the meaning of never giving up." |
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| — Trainer, Mikio Matsunaga
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- The five-petaled flower still in full bloom
In 2022, Lucky Lilac gave birth toRey de Oro（レイデオロ)'s daughter, who has yet to race. In 2023, her first child withEpiphaneiaunfortunately resulted in a miscarriage, but fortunately, the second child was born the following year.
Thus, the initial question was answered—is it a blessing or a curse to be born in the same era as legendary beings?
She needs no answer, for she herself is a part of the legend.
- Notes
- ↑ That is, the pitch running style, which compensates for a lack of stride length with a high frequency of steps. In the first season of the anime,Special Weekonce sought guidance from the master of the pitch running style,Taiki Shuttle.
- ↑ With 1 win in 39 career starts, her sire isSpecial WeekprogenyEpiphaneia（リーチザクラウン）。
- ↑ This racehorse had 2 wins in 6 career starts; during her active career, she suffered from roaring and chose to retire after undergoing two surgeries.
- ↑ One of the strong fillies of the 2019 generation, with a career of 2 wins in 6 starts. She never finished outside the top three, including the Oka Sho and the Yushun Himba, and retired due to illness at age three. Current offspringデンクマールBroke the course record for the Nakayama 1600m turf.
- ↑ This horse was the winner of the 2013 Oka ShoアユサンFull younger sister, with a career of 2 wins in 8 starts. She finished on the board in all six graded stakes she entered, including the Oka Sho and the Yushun Himba.
- ↑ Stay Goldoffspring, with a career of 9 wins in 24 starts. At the time, it had four graded stakes wins, and in the same year, it won a G1 race in Hong KongQueen Elizabeth II Cup。
- ↑ Lord Kanaloaoffspring, with a career of 4 wins in 21 starts.
- ↑ Heart's Cry（ハーツクライ) offspring, with a career of 6 wins in 19 starts. At this time, it had four graded stakes wins and had not yet won the Japan Cup.
- ↑ Career of 3 wins in 10 starts.
- ↑ Harbinger(Harbinger) offspring, with a career of 8 wins in 33 starts, two G1 wins, and five graded stakes wins.
- ↑ Deep Impact（ディープインパクト) offspring, with a career of 5 wins in 11 starts.
- ↑ Progeny of Stay Gold, with 5 wins in 33 career starts, including one graded stakes win. At that time, she had finished second in the Queen Elizabeth II Cup for two consecutive years.
- ↑ Refers to the three winners of the 2019 Triple Tiara legs, "G"Gran Alegria, "L"Loves Only Youand "C"Chrono Genesis。
Speed
Stamina
Strength
Guts
Intelligence
